It's thought to be the most-trafficked mammal in the world, but few people know that it exists. I recently introduced CNN Digital readers to the pangolin as part of my Change the List project, which focuses on bottom-of-the-list issues and places.

The pangolin is a rare, scale-covered animal that rolls up into a ball to protect itself from predators and has a tongue that's longer than its body. It would be a shame if it went extinct simply because people are trafficking it for its meat and scales, which are ground up and used in traditional medicine in Vietnam and China. That could happen before people learn how interesting and important it is. I hope you'll use your voice to advocate for this loveable underdog.

Here are seven ways you can help save the humble pangolin.

John D. Sutter

1. Fund a pangolin PSA in Vietnam

At least 10,000 pangolins are thought to be trafficked illegally each year. The trade, of course, would end if we could figure out how to curb the demand for pangolin in Vietnam and China, the two main consumer countries for pangolin products. The good folks at Education for Nature Vietnam, based in Hanoi, are trying to do just that -- and they will produce a pangolin-focused public service announcement to air on television in Vietnam if they can raise $5,000 for the effort. That's just to cover the costs of production.

Doug Hendrie, a technical adviser and manager of the group's wildlife crime and investigations unit, told me the PSA would be finished this year or early 2015. The PSA probably would focus on curbing demand for pangolin scales, which are easy enough to find a traditional medicine shops in Hanoi, even though selling the animals is illegal.

Environmental groups, on the whole, are doing far too little to support pangolin research and conservation. That's partly because they think the public loves all of the conventionally cute animals -- rhinos, tigers, elephants -- but doesn't care about oddballs like the pangolin. Help change their minds by donating to these CNN-vetted groups that are working to help stop the pangolin trade and are funding research to learn more about these secretive animals.

Part of the pangolin's problem is that it's just not popular like the animals that end up in Disney Pixar cartoons. If more people cared about the pangolin -- or even knew that it existed -- it might find a certain level of protection in celebrity. If someone starts a petition asking Disney Pixar to make a cartoon with a pangolin in it, I'll sign it, share it widely and put the link here. You can do that in a few clicks at Change.org or We the People.

The pangolin would make a great cartoon character: shy, curious and able to roll down hills like a basketball. The heroic introvert!

Anna Dewdney, author of the "Llama llama" series of children's books, wrote a fun little book called "Roly Poly Pangolin," about a shy animal that learns to find a friend. A portion of the book's proceeds go the Carnivore and Pangolin Conservation Program at Cuc Phuong National Park in Vietnam, which rescues pangolins and prepares them for release back into the wild.

5. Spread the word: Help us make the pangolin popular

Disney's great, but -- also -- who needs Disney? There are plenty of things you can do on your own to spread awareness about the pangolin. Share this story. Share the main piece in this series -- "The most trafficked mammal you've never heard of" -- and share these some of these educational (and entertaining) pangolin resources:

• IUCN Pangolin Specialist Group: A group of researchers and conservationists dedicated to finding out more about the pangolin and raising its international profile.

• SavePangolins.org: A great website with lots of info about what makes pangolins unique. It also has other ideas about how people can get involved.

6. Demand better law enforcement in Southeast Asia

In Vietnam, it wasn't hard at all for me to find pangolin scales and meat for sale. And in Indonesia, I heard that parks have only a small fraction of the rangers they would need to adequately protect the pangolin and other endangered wildlife. Bribes and corruption are commonplace. Help pressure these countries to take the illegal pangolin trade seriously. They could shut it down with more funding and effort. Currently, this species is too low of a priority.

Two groups working to do that are TRAFFIC, which operates throughout Southeast Asia, and Education for Nature Vietnam, a nonprofit in Hanoi. Both conduct their own wildlife crime investigations and work with authorities to break up these networks.

7. Submit a better name for P26, a pangolin in Vietnam

The Carnivore and Pangolin Conservation Program released a pangolin named P26 into the wild in late March. What kind of name is that? It sounds like a robot.